With One Arm Tied Behind My Back
by Risti
Summary: Vala’s focused anger was a sight to behold. Daniel/Vala Complete.


Title: With One Arm Tied Behind My Back

**Title**: With One Arm Tied Behind My Back  
**Rating**: R. Very mild R. Non-porn Porn.  
**Ship/Prompt**: Daniel/Vala, Handcuffs  
**Warnings**: See prompt. Play-fighting.  
**Disclaimer**: Not mine, all MGM's  
**Summary**: Vala's focused anger was a sight to behold.  
**Author's Notes**: Written for 's The Porn Battle VI. I broke my elbow last week when I was looking at the prompts. Spiletta42, who came up with the prompt (and beta'd the fic) broke her wrist the next day. Then this fic was written.

**With One Arm Tied Behind My Back**

Vala's focused anger was a sight to behold. Her target didn't stand a chance against her concentrated assault, and no sane man would cross the fierce look in her eyes. Daniel paused at the doorway of the base gym. He knew he'd find her here, expertly pulverizing a punching bag with everything she had. Everything except for her left hand, immobilized with a bright, garish pink cast around her wrist.

Carolyn only kept the color for off-world refugee children. Daniel hadn't been able to keep the smile off his face when Vala had insisted on it. Vala had accused Daniel of laughing at her misfortune, which had hardly been the case, but there was no reasoning with Vala when she was upset.

The cast would have barely been visible under long sleeves, but Vala had stripped down to a sports bra and leggings that stopped just above her knee. Sweat-drenched tendrils of hair stuck to her forehead and neck, the rest pulled up in a ponytail. Just as Daniel opened his mouth to say hi, or alternatively to begin breathing again, Vala turned and spotted him.

"Daniel, normally I'd be all for the thrill of knowing you're watching me, but right now, I'd rather be alone.

"You shouldn't be alone," Daniel crossed his arms across his chest and leaned back against the wall.

"Your patronizing concern is touching, Daniel" she said, pausing several times to land blows to the leather bag. "But unnecessary." Vala landed a rather impressive kick. "I'm already sentenced to four weeks in this cast and another two before I'm cleared to go off world again, because _apparently_ I can't take care of myself due to this injury I got _tripping over nothing while just walking around like normal_." Vala let out a series of quick punches with her good hand.

Daniel winced at her sarcastic echo of his description of what had happened. He didn't think she wanted Carolyn (and ultimately the whole base) to know what really happened, so he'd paraphrased…

"That's not why I'm here." Daniel moved to block Vala's escape route.

"Here to apologize then? Rather brave of you, under the circumstances. I might just be tempted to replace this inanimate object with a rather more satisfying target."

"That's why I'm here." Daniel grinned, while Vala raised an eyebrow. "It really wouldn't be a fair fight, if you're down an arm." Daniel could see Vala wanted to make a smart reply to that one, so he cut her off mid-snort. "That's why I brought these." Daniel held up a pair of black handcuffs, pulled from his back pocket.

Vala's shocked expression matched Daniel's from several hours earlier. He'd walked into his office to find Vala twirling handcuffs between cherry-painted fingernails, wearing nothing but a little satin, even less lace, and an insane pair of black patent leather platform heels. When he had tried to make his brain function long enough to tell her he had important work to do that afternoon, there had been a moment of confusion when he pushed her away, she stepped back, and a chair got in the way, causing her to lose her balance.

Now Vala's eyes were arrested on the cuffs, making Daniel smile. He slowly slipped his left hand inside the cuff, the action snapping her eyes back up to his. Daniel held the contact, letting her see the slight dare in his eyes. The other cuff he simply attached to a belt loop at his side. Giving it a bit of a tug, Daniel had limited motion now with his left hand, but enough range to prevent himself from falling on top of it and breaking _his_ wrist.

"Now we're evenly matched, wouldn't you say?" Daniel waited for Vala to comment, giving Vala the chance to land a punch under his chin. Almost immediately the tang of blood flooded his taste buds, and Daniel stretched his jaw to make sure nothing there was damaged, even as his free arm came up to block Vala's next blow.

"Ow," He said belatedly.

"Backing down already?" The grin on Vala's face was positively feral.

They had practiced together enough times to prevent Daniel from worrying about getting seriously hurt . Not because he didn't think Vala was capable of it, even with her injury, but because he knew she'd never let herself.

"Not a chance."

He planned to stick to defense – literally replace that punching bag. It was the least he could do for her. At least she was smiling again now. That was worth a few bruises.

They danced across the floor in a routine that involved ducking and wincing on Daniel's part, kicking and punching on Vala's part. There was also one elbow to his ribs that Daniel continued to feel with every breath he took. There didn't seem to be a need to say anything else – at least, Vala chose not to. Daniel bit back any further expressions of pain. What they didn't say with words, their eyes managed to convey to each other. Vala was clearly still pissed, but other desires were beginning to overshadow her need to harm Daniel.

After blocking a series of blows with his arm, a kick spot on his side that was still tender caught him unaware. Doubling over in pain, Daniel reacted on instinct when he saw Vala's knee coming towards his head. He grabbed her leg, realizing as he was about to throw her across the room that that it probably wasn't the best idea. The momentum of picking her up continued even as he paused, and Daniel found himself laying flat on his back with Vala straddled on top of him.

"This is familiar." Daniel used his right elbow to push himself up into a sitting position, wincing as that movement proved to be rather painful.

Vala saw the look of pain on his face, and ghosted fingers down his arm, across his chest. His poor, bruised muscles were ultrasensitive to her touch, causing Daniel to groan.

"Well, I'm done, for now," Vala said, her eyes looking more playful than she had since Daniel walked in on her that afternoon.

"Yeah, me too." Daniel continued, in the spirit of recreating that moment from years earlier. That meant the only natural thing for him to do was to cup a hand under Vala's chin, and pull her in for a kiss.

It was longer, deeper, and just more than that first kiss had been. How could it not be, with everything the years had brought them? Her mouth tasted the same, though, right down to the salty flavour of lingering sweat. Vala returned the kiss hungrily, but her assault on Daniel wasn't complete after all. She continued to inflict a very sweet torture on Daniel as her hands found bruises to massage, scratches to caress, all while shifting ever so slightly on his lap. Daniel finally broke away when his shoulder stung.

Twisting his head, Daniel saw that he was bleeding slightly from a cut that had also managed to rip his shirt. Vala once again let her thumb trail along it, but this time Daniel caught her hand.

"You know, this really is a disturbingly accurate moment of de ja vu," Vala commented, still looking down at his shoulder.

Daniel lifted her hand to his lips to kiss the diamond that had no doubt been the weapon in that particular injury. After she had fallen earlier, Daniel had dropped to his wife's side. When he saw her wrist begin to swell, he immediately pulled off her ring, switching it to her right hand, before helping her to change into a spare set of bdu's she kept in his office closet and rushing her to the infirmary. It made him feel very lucky all over again that she hadn't even thought to take it off and store it somewhere else in the meanwhile.

"You're still a fruitcake, do you know that?" He leaned in to kiss her again. He let his lips brush gently across hers before opening her pouting mouth. Then he just let the kiss linger, the heat building gradually in contrast to the violent passion undeniable up until a few moments earlier. This time it was Vala who groaned, closing her eyes.

Daniel felt himself smiling, but he didn't break the kiss until after he'd yanked his arm hard enough to rip the belt loop that had been hanging on by a mere thread at this point. He slipped Vala's hand which he still held into the other cuff, tightening it so she couldn't escape. He met Vala's eyes, and tried not to drown in their dark, stormy depth. This was about so much more than an apology for brushing her off and knocking her down earlier.

"Daniel," Vala leaned in to nuzzle his earlobe, "I hid the key in your office earlier this afternoon."

"Did you now," Daniel gasped as Vala's mouth moved down his neck to begin sucking at his pulse point. A few long moments later and Daniel had another bruise to add to his collection. "We'd better go back there and find it, then."

Daniel wondered if he could get her to put on those heels again, too.


End file.
